Partner Content
October 11, 2023
6-9 p.m.
Baltimore Center Stage
At Baltimore‘s gathering celebrating its ancillary GameChangers publication, the crowd was quite the proverbial mixed bag: musicians and money managers, entrepreneurs and energy execs, artists and animal lovers, chief executive officers and children’s advocates—just to name a few. But the one thing all attendees had in common was that they were supporters of making positive change in the community at large.
The evening started off with a cocktail hour in the lobby, which was followed by a program in the theater, where guests were further inspired as they learned more about many of the issue’s honorees. Needless to say, the event was a gamechanger in itself, with the evening supporting nonprofit partner Junior Achievement of Central Maryland.
Left to right: Mark Taubenfeld, Resource Real Estate Services vice president; Ami Taubenfeld, Itineris executive director/event honoree; Dawn Collins and Rick Collins, 2nd Lieutenant Richard W. Collins III Foundation co-founders/event honorees
Left to right: Tony Johnson, Power52 Foundation craft instructor; Franklyn Baker, United Way of Central Maryland president/CEO/event honoree; Carole Rosenberg, retired teacher; Adam Rosenberg, LifeBridge Health The Jill Fox Center for Hope executive director/event honoree
Left to right: Brown Advisory colleagues: Jacob Hodes, head of Baltimore office/event speaker; Nam Le, private equity analyst; Brianna Devine, private equity analyst; Shaily Shah, private equity analyst
Left to right: James Evans, Companions and Animals for Reform and Equity (CARE) CEO/event honoree; Stephen Kent, retired Baltimore School for the Arts visual department head; Edward Evans, Cordish Gaming corporate director of government affairs; Jen Evans, CARE chief operating officer
Left to right: Doug Retzler, urban orchardist/community arts activist/event honoree; Jen Berg, personal executive assistant
Left to right: Dexter Carr, Jr., Game4Good founder/CEO; Adeola Ajani, Fem Equity CEO/event honoree; Shelonda Stokes, Downtown Partnership of Baltimore president/event honoree & speaker; Ashley Mancinelli, Balitmore Community Foundation vice president of philanthropy/event speaker
Left to right: Junior Achievement of Central Maryland colleagues: Diana Pearson, director of development; Paul Kappel, Jr., pressident/CEO/event speaker; Amber Anthony, manager of events; Mandy Snyder, vice president of development
Left to right: Gina Hrybyk, mother of honoree; Ed Hrybyk, musician/Baltimore Pop-Up Jazz Jam & Charm City Porch Concerts founder/event honoree
LMuheft to right: Mujahid Muhammad, K.E.Y.S. president/honoree; Ajah Doswell, K.E.Y.S. Empowers chief financial officer; Jasper Barnes, BYKE Collective executive director/event honoree
GameChanger Lonnie Walker doesn’t just go out on a limb in his efforts to help and support many of Baltimore’s homeless and displaced young people. The founder and CEO of JOY (Just Our Youth) Baltimore is also fearless with his sense of fashion.
As he makes his way around town at various events, he’s found his wonderful attention-getting ensembles are a great way to draw attention not just to him, but also to his cause.
“Fashion is a statement. And my statement is, no one defines me but me,” he said. That’s the same message he tries to impart among the LGBTQ+ youth he works with.
At the GameChangers event, Walker chose to send that message with a brocade suit he found at Macy’s, accented with a necklace from Amazon, sunglasses designed by a friend of his and a rainbow Chanel pin.
“I’ve always loved fashion. I truly believe if you’re not turning heads, you’re not doing something right,” he said with a broad smile.
